Screws tighten on Kelly and Sarasota Bayside

Screws tighten on Kelly and Sarasota Bayside

Beset by bank debt and eroding property values here and abroad, Irish developer and Sarasota Quay owner Patrick Kelly is contemplating filing for bankruptcy protection.

Kelly’s dilemma marks the largest example to date of how the global economic crisis is seeping into Southwest Florida.

While such a move would be a personal blow, it is too early to tell how a bankruptcy filing would affect Sarasota Bayside, the $1 billion collection of condominium towers, office space, hotel rooms, retail and restaurants that a Kelly-led partnership unveiled in early 2004 but was unable to start.